Bengals QB Jake Browning Sends Loud Message to Vikings After OT Win

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Jake Browning, formerly of the Minnesota Vikings, is apparently one to hold a grudge.

The Bengals defeated the Vikings by three points in overtime on Saturday, December 16. Browning, who was with the Vikings organization on and off for a couple of years after entering the NFL in 2019, sent a message to his old team after the game.

Browning spoke to media members following the contest and detailed what that message was, as well as his mindset leading up to the revenge game with Minnesota.

There was definitely a little extra. … I remember getting cut [by the Vikings] and just being told, “Hey, we might have a spot for you on practice squad. Go to the hotel and wait.”

So I sat in the hotel for a couple of hours, not knowing if I had a job or not, and then just basically got a call from my agent. They didn’t even tell me. Like, I had been there for two years. I’ve been cut my fair share of times, and that was probably the shittiest one.

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Jake Browning Exacts Revenge on Vikings for Cutting Him

Browning downplayed the Vikings’ decision to cut him leading into the game during a press conference on December 12.

“There was two years there where they were the only team that wanted me,” Browning said. “I think there’s some appreciation from my time there, and it set me up to come into this building and do what I have been able to do the last couple of years.”

However, after leading the Bengals to victory, Browning admitted that what he said earlier in the week wasn’t exactly true.

“There was a little bit more this week,” the QB explained. “I know I denied it. And there’s some great people over there. It’s completely different, completely different coaching staff, and I want to emphasize there are some incredible people over there. But that one felt good.”

“I think right after we made the field goal to win the game, I screamed at a camera and said they never should have cut me,” Browning added.

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Vikings Offense Has Struggled Since Injury to Kirk Cousins

Browning may not be wrong about Minnesota’s decision to cut him a couple years back, as the team has struggled to find a replacement for Kirk Cousins since he went down with a torn Achilles tendon against the Green Bay Packers in Week 8.

The Vikings started rookie Jaren Hall against the Atlanta Falcons, but his tenure lasted less than a quarter due to a concussion. Josh Dobbs stepped in and had some early success, but sputtered out as the team scored just 30 points over his final 11 quarters at the helm.

Minnesota started Nick Mullens on Saturday, its fourth starting quarterback of the season. Mullens had his moments in Cincinnati, but turned the ball over twice while the Vikings were in field-goal range, including once in the red zone. He also threw a pick-six in the fourth quarter that might have ended the game in regulation if the referees had not called it back due to an offsides penalty on the Bengals.

Browning is now 2-1 on the season with 924 passing yards, 5 TDs and 2 INTs. The Vikings are 3-3 since Cousins went down and 7-7 on the year.

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